Dear CAMWS member:
We, members of the Executive Committee of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South, wish to state unequivocally our opposition to racism of any kind. As the second largest classical society in North America, we are particularly alarmed by the appropriation of ancient imagery by any political entity that might seek to employ the ideas and images that are property not only of classicists but also, in fact, of any thoughtful human being. We therefore call out all groups that seek to use these ideas for deleterious purposes as charlatans and manipulators. We urge all to adopt a posture of generosity and empathy as, whatever our race, creed or color, we are all together engaged in the human enterprise. Classicists are and will continue to be at the vanguard of advancing this way of thinking, promoting no particular world view save that of thoughtful care and compassion for every person, for that is the vital lesson we have learned from the civilizations that we study.
Alden Smith, Baylor University, CAMWS President
Antony Augoustakis, University of Illinois, Immediate Past President and editor of The Classical Journal
Laura Mcclure, University of Wisconsin, President Elect
Thomas J. Sienkewicz, Monmouth College, CAMWS Secretary-Treasurer
Roger Macfarlane, Brigham Young University
John Gruber-Miller, Cornell College
James O’Hara, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
David J. Schenker, University of Missouri
Andromache Karanika, University of California, Irvine
Timothy S. Heckenlively, Baylor University
Hunter H. Gardner, University of South Carolina
Keely Lake, Wayland Academy